With its super-moist and buttery texture, banana and brown sugar flavors, soft crumb, and 1,300+ reviews, this is a delicious AND undeniably popular banana bread recipe. You need 4 medium or 3 large ripe bananas.
I originally published this recipe in 2013 and have since added new photos and a few more success tips. It’s one of the most popular recipes I’ve published on this website, out of over 1,200. This recipe is such a fan favorite, that it deserved a spot in print! You’ll also find this recipe in my cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101.
One reader, Michele, says: “Perfectly delish every time! Absolutely foolproof. Nuts, no nuts, smidge more or less of sour cream—no problem… bigger bananas, smaller—no worries, perfect, beyond delicious EVERY time. ★★★★★”
This is my favorite banana bread recipe, one that I’ve cherished for years. It’s one of those classic recipes that you start to know by heart, just like a good pie crust or chocolate chip cookies recipe. This bread comes to mind first when I have leftover spotty bananas on the counter, and it’s the bread that’s on constant rotation in my freezer stash.
One reader, Tricia, commented: “I have this recipe on speed dial. LOL. It is so tasty and is always a crowd pleaser. My kids and entire family love it!!! ★★★★★”
Yes, I have this recipe on speed dial too!
I’ve tried dozens of banana bread recipes over the years, and when I baked and originally published this recipe many years ago, I never looked back.
Why You’ll Love This Banana Bread Recipe Too
- Mega banana flavor
- Not overly sweet, so banana flavor shines
- Dense, but still quite tender & soft
- Buttery & stays moist for days (tastes best on day 2, just like peanut butter chocolate chip zucchini bread)
- Straightforward, simple recipe
- Freezes wonderfully
- Excellent plain or with nuts or chocolate chips—or a swipe of cinnamon butter
How to Mash Bananas
Did you know you can use your electric mixer to mash bananas? Break or slice the spotty bananas into large pieces and place in the bowl of your stand mixer—or use a regular mixing bowl and your hand mixer. Begin beating on low, then gradually increase to medium-high speed as the bananas break down into mashed banana. Transfer the bananas to another bowl and use the mixing bowl for the butter and sugar. (No need to clean it—some mashed banana remnants is fine.)
I do this when I mash bananas for banana muffins and banana chocolate chip breakfast cookies too.
Other Banana Bread Ingredients
- Butter: Use softened butter for a soft texture and irresistible butter flavor.
- Brown Sugar: Use all brown sugar in this recipe. In the headnotes for this chocolate chip cookies recipe, I explain that brown sugar yields soft and moist cookies. Well, brown sugar works that same magic in banana bread, too. It also adds wonderful flavor.
- Eggs: Eggs supply cakes, cupcakes, breads, doughs, and cookies their stability and structure, as well as a tender texture. You’ll need 2 large eggs for this.
- Sour Cream or Yogurt: Sour cream or yogurt adds even more moisture to this banana bread. (You can use the 2 interchangeably in most baking recipes.)
For banana nut bread, add 3/4 cup of chopped nuts to the banana bread batter; I like using either pecans or walnuts. If you’re nuts for nuts (LOL), you’ll enjoy the toasty slight crunch nestled inside the soft crumbs. If you’re not a nut person, feel free to leave them out or replace with chocolate chips. For a whole wheat version, try my whole wheat banana bread. Or for a chocolate version, try my double chocolate banana bread.
Can I Use Frozen Bananas?
Yes and I do this often. Thaw the frozen bananas at room temperature. Drain off any excess liquid, mash, then use as instructed in the recipe below. See How to Freeze & Thaw Bananas for Baking. Try not to mash too much or else you’ll be left with 1 and 1/2 cups of banana-y liquid; some chunks are great.
Can I Turn This Into a Banana Bundt Cake?
I recommend using my extremely similar, scaled-up recipe for chocolate marble banana Bundt cake instead. You can leave out the chocolate swirl in that recipe.
How to Freeze Banana Bread
Freeze banana bread using these instructions to preserve its fresh flavor and texture for months:
- Cool baked banana bread completely.
- Tightly wrap the loaf or slices (individually or grouped) in 2–3 layers of plastic wrap or aluminum foil.
- Place wrapped banana bread in a large freezer-friendly storage bag or reusable container.
- Date the bag and freeze for up to 3–4 months. Thaw wrapped or unwrapped in the refrigerator or at room temperature. All methods work like a charm!
I like to freeze the quick bread in slices because slices thaw much quicker than a whole loaf.
Overall, this is an easy recipe for classic banana bread. The batter takes about 10 minutes to throw together, the bread stays moist for days, and nothing beats the smell of fresh banana bread in the oven. (Except for, maybe, zucchini bread or pumpkin bread… try those next!)
Other Favorite Banana Recipes:
- Banana Cake & Banana Cupcakes
- Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread
- Banana Cream Pie & Banoffee Pie
- Banana Muffins or Healthier Chocolate Banana Muffins & Blueberry Banana Muffins
- Banana Chocolate Chip Streusel Muffins
- Baked Banana Oatmeal
- Peanut Butter Banana Muffins
Description
With its super-moist and buttery texture, banana and brown sugar flavors, soft crumb, and 1,000+ reviews, this is a delicious AND undeniably popular banana bread recipe. You need 4 large ripe bananas. This recipe is also in my cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101.
Ingredients
- 2 cups (250g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1/3 cup (80g) plain Greek yogurt or full-fat sour cream, at room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 cups (345g) mashed bananas (about 3–4 ripe bananas)
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- optional: 3/4 cup (90g) chopped pecans or walnuts, or 1 cup (180g) semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Adjust the oven rack to the lower third position and preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Lowering the oven rack prevents the top of your bread from browning too much, too soon. Grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan with nonstick spray. Set aside.
- In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon together. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and brown sugar together on medium-high speed until light and creamy, about 3 minutes. (Here’s a helpful tutorial if you need guidance on how to cream butter and sugar.) With the mixer running on medium speed, add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the yogurt, vanilla, and mashed bananas until combined.
- Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and beat on low speed just until combined. Do not over-mix. Fold in the nuts/chocolate chips, if using. The batter should be thick.
- Pour and spread the batter into the prepared baking pan. Bake for 60–65 minutes, making sure to loosely cover the pan with aluminum foil halfway through, to prevent the top from getting too brown. The bread is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean with only a few small moist crumbs. Cool the bread in the pan set on a cooling rack for 1 hour. Remove the bread from the pan and cool it directly on the rack until ready to slice and serve.
- Store wrapped tightly at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Special Tools (affiliate links): 9×5-inch Loaf Pan | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Glass Mixing Bowls | Whisk | Silicone Spatula | Cooling Rack
- Update in 2025: With enough reader feedback stating the bread can often be too moist and dense, and therefore not bake properly, my team and I retested the bread multiple times over the past 2 years; we slightly reduced the amount of mashed bananas from 2 cups to 1 and 1/2 cups.
- Butter: If needed, you can use salted butter in this recipe with no other changes needed. I’ve also successfully reduced the butter down to 6 Tablespoons (85g) with no issue (just as tasty).
- Brown Sugar: This is not an overly sweet quick bread. If you want a sweeter banana bread, increase to 1 cup (200g) brown sugar. Feel free to replace some or all of the brown sugar with regular white granulated sugar.
- Cream Cheese Frosting: This banana bread also tastes fantastic with cream cheese frosting on top! To make it, beat 4 ounces (112g) of softened cream cheese and 1/4 cup (60g) of softened unsalted butter together on medium speed until smooth. Beat in 1 cup (120g) of confectioners sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract, and a pinch of salt until combined. Spread on cooled loaf.
- Banana Bread Muffins: Use this banana bread recipe to make 15 banana bread muffins. Spoon the batter into a lined or greased muffin pan (fill each to the top with batter) and bake for 5 minutes at 425°F (218°C); then, keeping the muffins in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (177°C). Bake for an additional 16–17 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The total bake time for the banana bread muffins is about 21–23 minutes. The initial burst of hot air helps those muffins rise nice and tall! Or try my quick & easy banana muffins.
- Brown Sugar: Feel free to substitute the same amount of regular white granulated sugar or coconut sugar. I do not recommend any liquid sweeteners.
- No Sour Cream or Yogurt? Feel free to use 1/3 cup mashed banana (in addition to what is called for in the recipe), unsweetened applesauce, or even canned pumpkin puree.
- Frozen Bananas: You can use frozen bananas here. Thaw the frozen bananas. Drain off any excess liquid, mash, then use as instructed in the recipe. See How to Freeze & Thaw Bananas for Baking. Try not to mash too much or else you’ll be left with banana-y liquid; some chunks are great.
- Chocolate Chips: I love this bread with chocolate chips, too. Feel free to add 1 cup of your favorite chocolate chips. No need to leave out the nuts if you add the chocolate chips. Chocolate chips and nuts are both optional.
- Can I Turn This Into Banana Bundt Cake? There isn’t enough batter. I recommend using my extremely similar, scaled-up recipe for chocolate marble banana Bundt cake instead. You can leave out the chocolate swirl in that recipe.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Has anyone made this banana bread in medium loaf pans – 8in x 3.88 ?
If so can I make 2 from this recipe and how long should they bake for?
Thanks in advance for your advice!
Hi Carol, we’re sure you could make two smaller loaves, but we’re unsure of the exact bake time needed. Use a toothpick to test for doneness!
Hi Amy. I have 2 different sets of mini loaf pans. My sturdy aluminum pans 5 3/4 X 3 1/4 pans ( USA – Handy-Foil Brand found in grocery stores….(●● they are the stronger of the 2 brands available) takes 36 ish min. for 4 pans. I test with a VERY THIN bladed knife.
Hi, how should I adjust the temp and cook time for 4 mini loaf pan (3″x5.5″). Thanks!
Hi Amy! We’re unsure of the exact bake time needed for that size pan. Keep a close eye on them and use a toothpick to test for doneness. Happy baking!
My oven is still set at 350 for 4 5 3/4 X 3 3/4 in see above comment for exact Brand & material
Tried this and it was so good! One of the best banana breads i made. I used both walnuts and dark chocolate chips. I love how it is not overly sweet and just right! Thank you so much
Can I leave out the nuts and chocolate chips?
Hi Stephanie, yes, absolutely. Enjoy!
Never had much luck with banana bread recipes before, but this one was a succes!! Often I’ve had the problem with them being too moist where I couldn’t figure out if they were really baked well… This one was perfectly moist without being “wet”. As you said, the day after it was even better and made me extremely excited about the result! Also love that you added the weight of the bananas – so much clearer!
Excellent banana bread! Loved by all my family.♥️
My loaf pan is 9 1/4 x 5 1/4. Is that ok? ( Otherwise my other one is smaller.)
Also how do I keep the blueberries from falling to the bottom? Thanks Sally!
Hi Doreen, yes, that size should be fine. If you want to add blueberries, you can try tossing them in a Tbsp of flour first before folding into the batter, to help prevent them from sinking. Happy baking!
Denise Adams can I use bread flour
Hi Denise, we don’t recommend bread flour, it would yield a dense and chewy banana bread. It’s best to stick with all-purpose for banana bread!
Followed directions exactly and I thought it seemed a bit dry…..I will probably add a little more butter or a smidge of vetable oil next time and not bake as long. Other than that, I added pecans and cranberries with a few chocolate chips and my hubby sneaked some right out of oven and loved it. Probably will be more moist if served warmed with smidge of butter or jam.
Looking to use Kefir in recipe. Have you tried or have recipe for use. Thank you.
Hi Emil, you *may* be able to use kefir instead of yogurt or sour cream (same amount), but the batter will be on the thinner side and, as a result, the baked bread will end up a little squat without as much rise. We recommend sticking to the recipe for best results.
Love this recipe! How long to bake if using mini-loaf pans?
Hi Barbara, Bake time will vary depending on the exact size of your mini loaves. Keep a close eye on them and use a toothpick to test for doneness.
I love this recipe! Thank you Sally! I made it last week as bread (I did have to bake longer than advised, but every oven is a bit different) and tonight I still have more bananas so I am making the same recipe into muffins. Yum!
I have made this recipe twice in the last couple of days because my can’t get enough! Thank you so much for sharing!
Everyone loves this banana bread and it comes out great every time! I always end up cooking it 65-70 min, don’t forget to tent the top Haley way through. Perfect banana bread.
My favorite banana bread recipe. I made this for my mom, who is most hypercritical when it comes to banana bread, and she LOVED it. I added chopped walnuts when I made it and high recommend if you like walnuts.
I omitted the yogurt & vanilla because I didn’t have any. I also didn’t have a loaf tin big enough so I made 12 cup cakes, Gas mark 5 for 20 mins and they turned out really nice.
I haven’t tasted this recipe yet. I had a lot of ripe bananas given to me. I made two loaves. Cooking time seems off. Mine took 75 min. I also have a bundt cake in the oven. I made 1.5 of the recipe for a bundt cake. Added chocolate chips and will make cream cheese frosting for it.
Back AGAIN for this perfect banana bread recipe!! We added a cinnamon nutmeg crumble on top
Thank you for this delicious recipe! I didn’t make one loaf, I made 12 regular muffins, 12 mini muffins & had enough to pour into a cereal bowl size baking dish. I adjusted the time to between 12-15 minutes & they all came out perfectly! Great recipe!
Thank you queen you never miss Excellent banana bread I can’t stop picking at it. I knew from the taste of the batter that it was gonna be fire lol. My oven is even a bit smaller but thankfully I was still able to make it work. Keep up the good work, sending my luv <3
Such an amazing recipe. No matter what I do I keep coming back to this one!
Thank you for this lovely recipe! I have used it repeatedly. I pair with a cinnamon buttercream frosting. My children have even requested it for their birthday cakes.
Hi Sally, I am excited to use your recipe and wanted to know if the Greek yoghurt can be substituted with buttermilk or plain yoghurt.
Thank you
Hi Rahima, you can use plain yogurt in place of the Greek yogurt, or even sour cream. Enjoy!
I’m confused. You’re tutorial for creaming sugar & butter instructs to use a paddle attachment however your video shows you using a whip.
Please clarify.
I’m very invested and excited to try your recipe. This will be my first departure from the BHG recipe I’ve followed for 50 yrs.
Thanks!
Hi Mary! In the video tutorial we use the whisk attachment to mash the bananas, then the paddle for creaming the butter and sugar. Happy baking!
Hi Sally, what should I reduce if I were to omit sugar from this recipe?
Hi Yada, we do not recommend omitting the sugar completely from this recipe. If you’re looking for a lower sugar alternative, you might enjoy this healthy whole wheat banana bread recipe instead.
Hi Sally. I use your recipes regularly. Today I decided to double the banana bread recipe. and realized I was short one banana! I thought maybe a half cup of applesauce might be a good replacement but then I noticed I had a small avocado that needed to be used! It seems to have worked perfectly, and nobody noticed! Also added chocolate chips and walnuts.
I have made lots of banana bread recipes in my time. I am doing some baking for a memorial and decided to try Sally’s banana bread. I will be taking out all the other banana bread recipes I have accumulated and replacing them with Sally’s. I don’t need any other recipes. It’s delicious and perfect.
Would it be okay to use vanilla flavored Greek yogurt?
Hi Kas, that will work in a pinch. Enjoy!
Flavorful, moist, delicious. I was too tired to use my “go to” lengthy recipe and came upon Sally’s Baking recipe. Never going back, this is a keeper! Thank you!
Has anyone ever substituted coconut oil for the butter? Wondering if that’s successful, and if so how much to use?
Hi Carol! You could try the same amount of solid coconut oil. We haven’t tried it, but some bakers have reported success with that swap. The flavor will obviously change.
Could you please add nutritional information with recipe?
Hi Hetty! We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076